Preview: Real Madrid - Dortmund

Chinmay Pandya gives The Football Front a preview of Dortmund's trip to Real Madrid.

Madrid take on the High flying Dortmund at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu tonight in a feisty affair between two extremely talented teams. Few would have doubted Dortmund's European potential this season, but even fewer people would have predicted them to be top of the table after 3 match days. Well, this match could mean the difference between the 1st and 2nd position in the group. While Borussia Dortmund head into their Champions League rematch against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu Tuesday on the heels of a dispiriting 0-0 draw at home to Stuttgart on Saturday, Madrid head into the game after a terrific all-round display trashing Zaragoza at home, 4-0. Jurgen Klopp told reporters that the draw felt more "like a defeat," leaving the two-time defending Bundesliga champions 11 points adrift of a sublime Bayern Munich side displaying absolutely dominant early season form.

TEAM NEWS

Real Madrid will be without injured France striker Karim Benzema when Borussia Dortmund visit as he has a thigh muscle problem. Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain, who has netted seven in the league but none in Europe so far, is the obvious replacement. Captain Sebastian Kehl was taken off with a broken nose during Saturday's 0-0 draw with Stuttgart in the Bundesliga. Manager Jurgen Klopp said that he is training with a mask to protect his nose but remains a doubt.

ON THE TACTICAL FRONT:

After what we’ve seen from Dortmund this season, especially away at City and at home to Madrid, games against Dortmund usually turn out to be midfield battles, with a extremely disciplined Dortmund midfield consisting of Reus, Gotze, Großkreutz sitting in front of a solid Gundogan and Kehl (assuming he’s fit by then) should prove to be a jam-packed midfield, very difficult to break through. On the Other hand, a technically accomplished and an intelligent midfield that Madrid possess, Madrid have the tools to get past the midfield but the same can be said about City’s midfield against Dortmund at the Etihad last time out, but they weren’t able to expose Dortmund’s defence. Tight midfield, pressing higher up the field, forcing the opposition to make mistakes, and then counter attacking with menace pretty much sums up Dortmund as a force in the Bundesliga in the past seasons and in Europe this season. As Madrid push up to dominate the match, and create chances could that be their undoing? Or with the amazing talent they have at their disposal, and with some determination, could they get past the Dortmund midfield and expose their defence? We’re going to find out soon.

While the figure might seen congested, it is supposed to show the cohesiveness of Dortmund’s midfield. It shows Mardid while in position, with Alonso sitting in front of the 2 central defenders and Modric in a fairly advanced position this encounter might just be an epic encounter between two tactically astute and world class coaches in Mourinho and Klopp, a feast for the neutrals.

Dortmund have been off pace in the Bundesliga lately, You don't win a league of the Bundesliga's calibre two-times running without quality and mental toughness in equal measure, so I expect a show of resolve at the Bernabeu. Still, it seems that there is a sense of unease around Dortmund that could turn into panic if Real Madrid were to start fast.

This article was written by Chinmay Pandya, you can find his work at http://nimblefootwork.blog.com/ and you can follow him on Twitter: @_thesoccerist

Mourinho out! But Replaced with who?

In his debut article for The Football Front, Damian Peters explores the possibilities of who could replace Jose Mourinho at Madrid.

The cries for the head of Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho are so loud after his team suffered another home defeat at the hands of the mighty Barcelona, that even if you had on ear plugs with an ear muff, you would still hear it. This wasn’t helped by the strong reports which revealed last Sunday Jose Mourinho was seriously considering quitting Madrid in the summer.

Many Spanish tabloids echoed what was supposedly are the cries of the fed up Real Madrid fans asking for a change from the negative tactics often deployed by Mourinho against Barcelona, which still most of the time still resulted in his team losing to the Catalan giants.

The aftermath of the game against Barcelona was a PR disaster, with Marca publishing an article which contained an argument between Mourinho, Sergio Ramos and captain Iker Casillas. Indeed, Madrid, Mourinho and the players denied what was printed in the paper, only saying when questioned about it, that they wasn't here to talk about that incident.

Madrid’s home game against Athletic Bilbao was amusing as Jose Mourinho was whistled by some sections of the Bernabeau faithful, though the other sections chanted his name, an accomplishment that no other manager of the club can boast.

For the first time in his reign as coach Los Blancos there was clear discontent among the fans with his tactics and an antics, with many fans asking for him to be replaced as coach. Replaced? Fine, but with who? Which available coach is capable of replacing a man who is a proven winner, with a track record of winning trophies in four different countries and leagues. Not only this he is a leader strong enough to take charge of a dressing room filled with multi-millionaires, each with an ego as huge as the Eiffel Tower.

One such candidate to replace him would be Guus Hiddink, he himself a former coach of Madrid, and currently out of work after leaving his post as coach of the Turkish national team. But his time there was marred by bad results and off-field comments criticising the board and the club, which ultimately led to him being sacked.

Another Candidate would be Arsenal's boss Arsene Wenger. The Arsenal manager is continuously linked with the Madrid jobs. Certain media sources will tell you he turned down The Galacticos to stay at Arsenal. But with Arsenal failing to win a trophy in over six years, is Arsene Wenger the kind of manager the hierarchy at the club wants to bring in? I doubt it. Wenger also might not be interested in ever taking the Madrid job.

Then there is Rafa Benitez, the man who lead Liverpool to Champions League glory in 2005. Benitez has being out of work for over a year and a half now and is presently doing guest punditry on TV. Benitez, without a doubt is a good coach, but his coaching style has being questioned at time, with former players saying that he was distant and cold towards them and that they hardly had a relationship with him. His tactics has also come under fire in the past, his insistence on using a zonal marking system when defending corners even though Liverpool was shipping goal after goal using the system. His activities in the transfer market also ceases to flatter, he was notorious for bringing in very average players and placing them on massive salaries, that is something that the Madrid faithful will not want to see, not with Barcelona threatening to win every title until thy kingdom comes.Yes, some Madrid fans might want Mourinho replaced, but can the available candidates do a better job than he's doing now? Considering how prominent Barcelona are? And do the other candidates even want the job at the moment?

Real Madrid have lacked continuity for a long time, maybe Mourinho is the man to manage the club over a extended period and it would only make sense considering his track record and the amount of money that they invested in the current squad that he wanted assembled.

This article was written by Damian Peters you can find more of his work at http://futbaldisciple.wordpress.com/ . Make sure you follow him on Twitter too: @futbal_disciple

Video: A subtle piece of Madrid propaganda?

This video is pretty uneventful. It's Jose Mourinho been given a birthday cake on his birthday last week by the Madrid lads. But what's interesting about the video is who presents the cake. It's the Spanish duo of Sergio Ramos and Iker Casillas.

There has been a lot of speculation from the Spanish and major European papers suggesting a break down in relationship between some of the Spanish players at Madrid, in particular, Sergio Ramos and Iker Casillas towards Jose Mourinho. Most of you have probably read or heard the story regarding the dispute between Mourinho and Sergio Ramos following the Barcelona defeat in the Copa Del Rey.

Could this video by the Official Madrid channel be attempting to paint a picture that all his harmonious in the Madrid camp? I think that just could be the case.

4-3-3 - it's Successes and Failings

The Football Front’s tactical expert Itsaballnotabomb evaluates the 4-3-3 system and its strengths and weaknesses.

The 4-3-3 has shot to fame recently. It was made famous by the Dutch sides of the 70’s and is synonymous with Total football, which was created in that period.

For a 4-3-3 to be effective each player must control his zone. Zonal marking is used for all positions, as it makes it easier to press effectively. The only time zonal marking isn’t used is when the ball is about to be put in the box, at this point the marking switches to man marking for obvious reasons.

There are many ways in which a 4-3-3 can be used because of its flexibility. Some sides such as Bolton under Sam Allardyce used it as a counter-attacking formation. The back 4 generally would stay back while the wingers would try to play off the target man striker, normally Kevin Davies. The wingers would also provide service to the target man through crosses. The wingers though would play more like wide midfielders and would happily track back into their own half, much like Mourinho’s Chelsea.

Another way it can be used is in a very attacking sense. Here, the wingers would normally stay forward with the striker. All 3 midfielders may also have the license to make forward runs and try and support the attacking trio. If the wingers are pushing more centrally, or playing as inverted forwards, this will often mean that the full backs will push high up the pitch and become wingers themselves. A great example of this is Marcelo and Cristiano Ronaldo last season, Marcelo's runs forward allowed Ronaldo to cut in on his right foot to great effect for Real Madrid.

With the front three it also makes pressing high up the pitch easier than with a 4-4-2 formation, purely because the 4-3-3 formation is naturally further forward than a 4-4-2. A great example of pressing is the Dutch side in the 1974 World Cup, although this would be hard to recreate now due to the change of the offside law. When pressing, the side will try to force the team inside as this is where the 4-3-3 has a numerical advantage; it will also stop a long ball straight up one of the flanks which can be potentially devastating as the full back can get out numbered if the midfield is not quick enough to cover.

At all times in the 4-3-3 one of the midfielders will sit in front of the defence to form a defensive triangle and a midfield triangle. Defensively this is a very solid formation and can be hard to break down as each position is well covered by another player. The midfield diamond also allows a side to keep possession easily, especially if there is a numerical advantage in midfield. A great example of this in recent times is Barcelona. The midfield switches positions and rotates, constantly making space for a pass, Messi also joins in from his traditional striking position and adds another man to the midfield, making it even easier to maintain possession. This is especially effective against teams who play two in the middle. (see diagram above.)

A weakness of the 4-3-3 is the demands that it puts on the side. If a side is not well drilled it can be easily picked apart, especially if the pressing is poor. The flanks can also be easily exposed by a cross field ball as it can leave a 2 on 1 situation with the fullback and opposition winger. But this can be reduced if the winger is prepared to track back and follow the full back. But the flip side of this is that it can make the striker isolated.

The striker in this formation has a very demanding role as well. Not only has he got the responsibility of scoring goals but the striker also needs to be able to hold the ball up. The striker also needs the technical proficiency to drop into the midfield and then have the ability to pick a pass. More crucially, if the centre forward does not link the midfield with the attack the side can become predictable and very easy to defend against. Arsene Wenger found this out a couple of seasons ago when Robin Van Persie got injured. A good number 10 needs to have all the attributes needed to play up front in a 4-3-3. Unfortunately for Wenger he had no replacement for the striker and Arsenal's goal scoring and form dipped considerably.

All in all, the 4-3-3 can be a very attacking or defensive formation and its flexibility is one of the reasons why it's gaining more popularity in recent times. However, the high demands on the players and the technical ability needed, can often mean that lesser sides struggle to get success from the 4-3-3.

This article was written by Itsaballnotabomb, you can follow him on Twitter at - @ballnotabomb

You can find more of his work on his blog – itsaballnotabomb.wordpress.com

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Splintered Woodgate’s Final Chance

The Football Front's Christian Brown assess Jonathan Woodgate's move to Stoke.

“Madrid’s true leader.” “One of the best centre backs to play for Newcastle.” “Leeds United’s ‘jewel in the crown.’” Jonathan Woodgate has been showered with compliments over his 13 year long professional career. An 8 time England international, the clichéd ‘rock at the back’ has commanded £36.4 million pounds worth of transfer fees, spreading from Yorkshire to Madrid. However, he now finds himself at Stoke City, having failing to agree a new contract with Tottenham Hotspur. No disrespect to Stoke, but they’re a bit of a comedown seeing he once played for Real Madrid.

So where did it all go wrong?

The answer is very simple. Injuries. The term ‘injury prone’ fits to Woodgate like a tailor made suit. Notable injuries to his groin and back have meant that Woodgate has never really had a full season playing week in, week out. It’s a great shame, because had injuries not struck him, he could have been spoken about as one of the great English defenders of his generation, rather than a player who has ‘shot it’ and ‘should have retired ages ago.’

The fact Real Madrid, the biggest club in world football, forked out £13.4 million it emphasises the appreciation of his quality. Yes, his debut was a horror show to say the least (scoring an own goal before being sent off for a second yellow.) But the fact he recovered from that strongly enough to be recognised as a bit of a cult hero due to his performances after, it gives you an insight of his character. His time at Madrid nearly led him back into the England fold, but again, injury put a stop to that.

A move to Tottenham followed soon after. Woodgate will go down in Tottenham’s history books for his efforts there. It was his goal that clinched them a Carling Cup victory over their hated rivals Chelsea. He also gained the Man Of The Match award in the process. Woodgate was Tottenham’s captain for a short while, and was instrumental in their recovery to 8^th position in 2009

However the injuries creped back in 2009. This resulted in Woodgate being out for 14 months with a groin injury this time. He came back to play once in Spurs’ victory against AC Milan in the Champions League as a substitute.

As he could not agree a new deal with Tottenham, he signed a pay-as-you-play contract with Stoke, making his debut in a friendly against Aldershot. Credit to him, he lasted just over an hour before being substituted, and this switch had nothing to do with an injury either.

Throughout his career, Woodgate has proved he is world class. When at Newcastle, he had a certain dangerman who goes by the name of Didier Drogba in his back pocket when they played Marseille in the UEFA Cup semi finals. Surprise, surprise though, Woodgate was injured for the second leg and guess who scored twice to send Newcastle out of Europe?

With Stoke though, he has the possibility of playing in this competition again – if he can remain fit. Pulis would have brought him in to add depth to his squad as they could embark on a long season; much like Fulham did in 2009. Indeed, budging Stoke’s first choice centre backs Shawcross and Huth won’t be easy. But if Woodgate can recapture his form and keep fit, there’s no reason why he can’t. Who knows, this time next year he may have signed an extension with Stoke, and Spurs may be kicking themselves as to why they released him. Alternatively, he could find himself at the bottom of the footballing scrapheap, begging ex clubs Leeds and Middlesbrough for a final shot at the beautiful game.

Football has been ever so cruel to Jonathan Woodgate.

But only time will tell if his move to Stoke reignites or further declines his career.

This piece was written by Christian Brown, you can follow him on his Twitter - @Chris78901, Chris also writes for The Sports Pallet too. All of Chris' work is on his blog, 1-chris78901.

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Addressing the Balance

Arguably, the English Premier League is best league in the world. It’s an incredibly competitive league where the quality is great throughout and the game is played with a great tempo and physicality.

But, there has been something of a moral panic in England in the past few years. There has been a consistent worry about the number of English players playing for the elite clubs in England. To many observers of the game, there is simply not enough English players representing the top four clubs.

The common hypothesis is that as the Premier League has got wealthier the number of English players in the league has rapidly declined. Perhaps it’s agreeable that domestic football has become more international. But the question is, how does England fare to other nations such as Italy and Spain in terms of the number of nationals of the particular country representing their top four clubs?

The FA have tried to minimise the issue. This season, the Premier League has implemented the home grown rule. The rule demands that each team must enlist at least eight ‘homegrown players’ in their official squad list. But homegrown players can include foreign players who have been lived in England since their early teens. So some argue, the homegrown rule is perhaps flawed.

For the analysis, there has been a comparison between the number of nationals used by England in contrast to the number of nationals used by Spain and Italy. This will put a measure to the degree of England’s concern with the number of English players representing the top four.

The teams chosen for the analysis are the English, Spanish and Italian top four of 2009/10 season. This therefore means the teams analysed are the clubs who originally participated in the Champions League this season.

The statistics are based on players who have made appearances for the teams in any of the four competitions (National Cup, League, Europe, League Cup) during the 2011/11 season.

England

Team	No. of players	No. ENG players	% of ENG players	No. of players representing in Europe	No. of ENG players representing in Europe	% of ENG players representing in Europe
Chelsea	30	8	26%	25	7	28%
Man United	28	9	32%	26	8	32%
Arsenal	31	6	19%	25	5	20%
Tottenham	32	13	40%	23	6	26%
Total	121	36	29%	99	26	26%

One could argue it’s alarming that only one team in England’s top four has a double figure representation of English players. Tottenham clearly have a higher representation of English players compared to the other teams in the top four. In comparison to their North London rivals Arsenal, there is a gulf in difference. Only six players have been of English origin for Arsenal this season. To many, this is an incredibly disturbing statistic.

However, the Champions of England, Manchester United, had the highest domestic bias out of all the top four teams in Europe. So it could be viewed as good that United made it to the Champions League Final this season as they had the highest representation of English players.

Spain

Team	No. of players	No. ESP players	% of ESP players	No. of players representing in Europe	No. of ESP players representing in Europe	% of ESP players represnting in Euroope
Barcelona	32	21	65%	26	15	57%
R. Madrid	33	17	51%	26	11	42%
Valencia	28	15	53%	26	14	53%
Sevilla	28	12	42%	26	11	42%
Total	121	65	53%	104	51	49%

There is a frightening difference between England and Spain. All the Spanish teams in the top four were in double figures in regards to the number of Spanish players used. Even Sevilla, the team with the lowest domestic bias, still has a far greater figure than any of the English top four. This demonstrates how poorly English players are being represented in the elite positions of the Premier League.

Furthermore, for Barcelona, Valencia and Real Madrid, more than 50% of the players who appeared for them this season were Spanish. With the English teams analysed, there was not a single team who had anywhere near 50% of their players being English.

Barcelona deserves special praise. They have dominated Europe and Spain with a sensational domestic bias. Real Madrid’s domestic bias is 51% while Barcelona’s domestic bias is 65%. This demonstrates the wide gap between the rivals.

Italy

Team	No. of players	No. ITA players	% of ITA players	No. of players representing in Europe	No. of ITA players representing in Europe	% of ITA players represnting in Euroope
Inter	30	7	23%	29	8	27%
Roma	28	12	40%	26	10	38%
Milan	32	16	50%	23	11	47%
Sampdoria	29	18	62%	29	18	62%
Total	116	50	43%	107	47	43%

Even when comparing the domestic bias in Italy, England is severely lagging behind. 50% of the players used for the Serie A champions Milan were Italian, while only a mere 32% of Manchester United players, for example, were English.

The likes of Roma, Milan and Sampdoria have a higher or very similar domestic bias to Tottenham (the team with highest domestic bias for the English teams analysed) This vividly proves not only in Spain but even in Italy, the top English teams are not representing English players as much as the other nations are representing their nationals.

But perhaps, Sampdoria are evidence that too many nationals can be an issue. In the 2009/10 season, Sampdoria finished 4^th. While in the following season, they finished 17^th and were relegated. This season they had a 62% domestic bias. One could argue that Sampdoria are proof you need a balance between the amount of nationals and foreign players.

Out of all the Spanish and Italian teams analysed, one team had a domestic bias which is even worse than some Premier League clubs - Inter Milan only fielded seven Italian players this season. Only Arsenal had a poorer domestic bias. Furthermore, when Inter won the Champions League in 2010, there was not a single Italian player in their starting eleven for the final. Perhaps this is a worry for Italian football. It could suggest that Italian footballers are becoming over-looked. However arch rivals, Milan are proof that this is not the case. After all, they were highly successful this season and they used 16 Italian players.

The statistics prove two things. Firstly, that English players are not given a sufficient chance on the largest club football stage. While in contrast, it could also suggest that English players are not good enough to play at the top of club football. Perhaps one would have to agree with this as if the English players were good enough to play on the top level, they would play. The simple fact there are only a handful of English players representing England’s top teams clearly indicates that a majority of the English players are simply not good enough and there are better players from different nationalities.

Perhaps the dearth of English players at the higher end of the Premier League I could provide an explanation to why English players are viciously over priced. In past few years the asking price for English players has risen beyond belief. The prices could be inflated due to the fact there are not many English players at the elite clubs. Therefore meaning that English players who are credible for the elite clubs are often rare, thus explaining their inflated price. Furthermore, one could even argue the new home –grown rule in Europe and in the Premier League has further inflated the price of English players. It is depressing but the nationality of a player can often inflate the price.

However, more has to be done to improve English players. After all, managers pick the players on terms of their ability. If an English player is good enough, he will play in the team. It is simple as that. But a majority of the time, English players are falling short at the higher end of club football. English clubs need to further invest in their academy’s and look to develop the players technical levels. The clubs need to take more of an interest and a more active role on the grass roots level. The English kids of tomorrow need to be instilled with a structured philosophy of how the game should be played and why it should be played in such a way. This will develop the youngsters understanding and reading of the game.

The stats prove England are lagging behind their rivals, and they have reacted far too slowly to the problem. In England’s top four, there is almost certainly one Spanish or Italian player per team. Yet in Italy and Spain there aren’t any English players in their top four sides.

The English clubs need to take a far more proactive role in their attempts to make the English players more suited for the elite clubs in England. But sadly, as the stats prove, the Spanish and Italian players are streaks ahead of the English players at this moment of time.

This piece was first published on Back Page Football

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The Eternal Struggle

The hardest thing to do in football is win your domestic league. You can hide from no one. You must play everyone else in the competition twice home and away. You do not have the luxury of knocking a team out of the running permanently after one meeting. You must perform consistently week in and week out just as every Champion before you has done.

However in the land of Spain, there is a manager nown as the Special One. His managerial post is that of the World’s biggest club, Real Madrid. Perhaps being at the World’s biggest club it therefore means there are greater expectations.

However, Mourinho’s objective remains simple: beat Barcelona.

Many bloggers, writers, pundits, journalists and fans have speculated on how you beat Barcelona over a 90 minute match or a two legged affair.

But none of us dare to answer the question: ‘how do you beat them in a league campaign?’

Florentino Perèz had to come up with a plan in which to do so, he initiated the plan of bringing Josè Mourinho to Los Blancos. This was then fo

llowed with the signings of Mesut Ozil, Sami Khedira, Angel Dì Maria and Ricardo Carvalho. These new Galacticos saw Real Madrid crowned as the Copa Del Rey Champions for the first time since 1993. They reached the Champions league semi finals for the first time since 2003 and they finished with a stunning 92 points along

with being the division’s top scorers with 105 goals.

The only problem was Barcelona were better.

So now Mourinho’s reign as Real Madrid boss is a year old. He has said his teams improve in his second season in charge. His second season at Porto saw him lift the Champions League trophy as well as finish as domestic champions. At Chelsea, his second season saw him win the Premiership in an even more dominant fashion than the first. While with Inter Milan his second season resulted in 3 trophies for Inter and this includes a Champions League trophy.

So here comes lucky number 2 for Jose.

But how can he best Barca over the course of 38 games? He has started his manoeuvres in the transfer window, with the removal of general manager Jorge Valdano. This probably is sufficient evidence to suggest that Jose Mourinho will have more say in club arrivals in comparison to any other Real coach in the past. Real have already sealed the signatures of the Turkish pair Nuri Sahin and Hamit Altintop. Emmanuel Adebayor is expected to follow soon and make his loan move from Manchester City permanent.

With Gonzalo Higuaìn and Karim Benzema in the ranks Adebayor may play the role of super sub should Real be chasing a game. He showed in his loan spell that he can start games and score goals in the absence of the first choice strikers.

The only two statistics Real Madrid trumped Barcelona in were; goals scored and aerial duels. Barcelona were not even in the La Liga’s top 6 in the latter statistic. Scoring goals and aerial duels are the first two things you will read on Adebayor’s CV/Internet dating description. He is by no means a big signing like Beckham, Ronaldo, or Zidane. He is a squad player, of the calibre like Solskjaer for Man Utd or Kalou for Chelsea. If Real Madrid want the La Liga title back, Adebayor is a must.

With Hamit Altintop, Real have purchased a right sided player rich in technique who can play at full back or on the wing. Like Adebayor we won’t see him start ahead of other attacking midfielders like Ozil, Ronaldo or Dì Maria. But we will see him here and there and he will give Real Madrid more attacking options on a wider level in every sense of the word. Given Sergio Ramos is Real Madrid’s most booked player of all time we can expect to see Hamit fill in at right back once or twice as well. There is one other reason why he can help Real Madrid win the league. This:

A rumour that appears to be gathering truth is the one surrounding the Brazilian wonderkid Neymar. Real Madrid revealed last week they were close to signing him back in 2005. But contractual issues prevented Neymar putting pen to paper. Since then Neymar has played his football with Santos in Brazil. His tricks, flamboyant style and his mask helped him score 24 goals in all competitions this season. The 19 year old is a player well ahead of his time.

It is expected Neymar will become a Galactico after the Copa Libertadores final. This signing will be more for the future one would imagine. But, if he does sign, he will certainly help Real Madrid in their pursuit of the Catalans.

As mentioned before scoring goals for Real was not a problem, defending them wasn’t too big of a problem either. After all, they only concede 33 goals in last seasons La Liga campaign. It’s a better defensive record than Manchester United. The only team who had a better defensive record in the Spanish League was....well, you know who it was. Barcelona conceded only 22 goals last season. This is the kind of defence Mourinho will be looking to build. At right back he now has Altintop as along with Alvaro Arbeloa and yellow card collector Sergio Ramos. At the core of Madrid’s defence they have Ricardo Carvalho, Pepe and Raùl Albiol. Behind these high class defenders is the Spanish captain Iker Casillas. So the obvious area in which Jose will look to tighten up his back line is at left back.

Marcelo has just enjoyed his best season at the Bernabeu in terms of goals scored and matches played. He does however lack some position awareness which Sky’s Graham Hunter stated the only solution was to equip him with a Tom Tom sat nav device. Even then he is a liability. Given the attacking talent Real possess and the further quality they may purchase do they really need a full back of this nature? They probably don’t, at least not as a regular first team player. If Real want a left back who can gallop up the left hand side without neglecting his defensive duties maybe they should take a closer look at Gael Clichy. Arsenal appear to be willing to sell the highly rated Frenchman.

Hypothetically Real Madrid can win the league with these arrivals and affordable departures:

Arrivals:

Emmanuel Adebayor (Manchester City)

Nuri Sahin (Borussia Dortmund)

Hamit Altintop (Bayern Munich)

Neymar (Santos)

Gael Clichy (Arsenal)

Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus)

Departures:

Esteban Granero

Kakà

Ezequiel Garay

Fernando Gago

Lassana Diarra

Jerzy Dudek

Must stay:

Ricardo Carvalho

Sami Khedira

Karim Benzema

Sergio Canales

The latter two lists are players that have been speculated to leave. Obviously the rest of the squad is a ‘must stay.’

Only time will tell if Real can trump the team which many call the greatest club side of all time.

However, Jose Mourinho is like a virus, he grows stronger over time so does his teams. Dì Maria, Ozil, Alonso, Ramos and the great Cristiano Ronaldo will all improve next season. I won’t say all this will result in Real Madrid once again becoming La Liga Champions but it will give them a very good chance.

If you were to ask me do I THINK Madrid could win the La Liga title? I would have to say yes.

Below is my Madrid XI with players Mourinho has at his disposal.

This piece was written by Kevin Leonard, you can follow him on his Twitter - @megatronSTALIN, Kevin regularly writes for Away Goals too.

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Champions League semi - final second leg predictions

This week marks the last of this year’s Champions League semi final ties. Perhaps, there isn’t much excitement for Real Madrid or Schalke. But there are always predictions challenges to make things interesting!

This week our guest predictor is the football writer, Musa Okwonga. Our other predictor is The Football Front’s Champions League predictor, Dominic Vieira.

Fixture	Ibby Akkas prediction		Dominic Vieira prediction		Musa Okwonga prediction		Actual score
Barcelona v R. Madrid	4-2		2-1		1-0		1-1
Man United v Schalke	3-1		3-0		2-0		4-1
Total Scores	Correct Results - 1	Perfect Result - 0	Correct Results - 1	Perfect Result - 0	Correct Results - 1	Perfect Result - 0

The Results

Musa Okwonga - 1 point

Dominic Vieira - 1 point

Ibby Akkas - 1 point

Follow both Musa and Dominic on Twitter;

Musa Okwonga - @Okwonga

Dominic Vieira - @DominicVieira

Check out Musa’s blog ; - blogs.independent.co.uk/author/musaokwonga/

Dominic Vieira is a senior writer for A Football Report, their website is worth a look too; - www.afootballreport.com/

Things you may like to read

Why the Royal Family has many similarities to footballers - http://tiny.cc/1lj6t

Jose Mourinho. The ultimate manager or the ultimate journey man? - http://tiny.cc/ii8te

It’s official. Football has gone mad. Football club sign an 18 month old toddler! - http://tiny.cc/uwrqd

Champions League Semi-Final predictions

There are two mouth watering ties for this year’s Champions League semi finals. We have two fantastic predictors this week. Our predictors are, Steven Dow – the owner of the football retailer, Football Nation. And our other predictor is Ian Stone – the stand-up comedian, who has appeared on comedy shows such as Mock the Week and Never Mind The Buzzcocks.

Fixture	Ibby Akkas prediction		Steven Dow prediction		Ian Stone prediction		Actual Result
Schalke v Man United	0-0		1-1		1-1		0-2
Real Madrid v Barcelona	0-2		1-2		2-1		0-2
Total correct scores	Correct Results -1	Perfect Results - 1	Correct Results - 1	Perfect Results - 0	Correct Result - 0	Perfect Result - 0

The Results

Ibby Akkas - 4 Points

Steven Dow - 1 Point

Ian Stone - 0 points

Be sure to check out Ian Stone’s great website; www.ianstonecomedian.co.uk/

You can also follow him on Twitter too: @iandstone

Have a look at Steven Dow’s Football Nation website. Football Nation is a fantastic football merchandise retailer; http://www.thefootballnation.co.uk/

You can also follow Steven Dow on Twitter too: @aFootballMan

The Point System

Correct Result = 1 point

Perfect Result = 3 points

Things you may like to read

Are players given the captaincy for the wrong reasons? - http://tiny.cc/aefds

Jose Mourinho. The ultimate manager or the ultimate journey man? - http://tiny.cc/ii8te

Why Michael Owen's tweets are doing no favours for himself - http://tiny.cc/xlwnb

Jose Mourinho. The ultimate manager? Or the ultimate Journeyman?

Jose Mourinho is simply a brilliant manager. His achievements speak for themselves. The last four clubs Mourinho has been at, he has brought major success to those clubs. The fact he has never lost a home game in 9 years demonstrates his fantastic qualities as a manager. Even though Mourinho is arguably one of the games finest managers, ever, he continually flirts with other clubs.

Since 2007 he has found himself at three different clubs. The longest term he has ever served in management is a mere three years with Chelsea. There hasn’t been a year where Jose Mourinho hasn’t shown light interest in a football club or been heavily linked with a club. Is Mourinho the ultimate Journeyman manager?

Jose Mourinho gained his reputation as one of Europe’s brightest young managers during his time at Porto. It’s no surprise. Seeing in a two year spell he won a Champions League, UEFA Cup, Portuguese Liga (twice), and the Portuguese Cup (again twice.) Mourinho offered something the modern game craves for. Instant success.

By the end of his first season at Porto, Jose Mourinho’s name was being linked with a host of clubs across Europe. And it was clear through Mourinho’s responses that he was seriously interested in moving to a larger club. Mourinho continually refused to rule out interest in different European clubs. Arguably, this was a sign of things to come. As the media frenzy surrounding Jose Mourinho was ever increasing. This lead to the Portuguese tactician to consistently hit the gossip pages in Italy, Spain and England. This unsettled and annoyed the Porto fans as it seemed their manager was looking for his next voyage. But I’m sure the Porto fans didn’t mind along as the team were successful on the pitch. And weren’t they hugely successful.

It was clear that Mourinho’s second season at Porto would be his final season at the club. The fantastic feat of winning the Champions League and the Portuguese League made Mourinho too big for Porto. Throughout Porto’s fantastic European Cup run, Jose Mourinho was being linked with several European power houses. The likes of Chelsea, Man United, Liverpool, R.Madrid were all in the papers linked with the Portuguese manager. Mourinho left Porto with an impressive winning ratio of 70%.

Chelsea in 2004 won the battle to acquire Mourinho’s services. The fans and players fell in love with Jose Mourinho. And Mourinho fell in love with the club, the fans and the English game. Mourinho, like at Porto was again dominantly successful with Chelsea. In his three years he won, two Premier League trophies, two League cups and one F.A Cup. It was only a matter of time till Mourinho was being linked to other European clubs. Even though Mourinho’s Chelsea were seen as the favourites to dominate Europe and England. It seemed Mourinho was already thinking of his next challenge. Again, he continually failed to rule out interest from a host of European clubs, such as Inter Milan.

The sudden departure of Jose Mourinho from Chelsea was a massive shock. Simply because it happened so early in the season (September 20th..) It was a decision which stunned the whole of European football. Had Mourinho’s relationship been a little better with Roman Abramovich maybe he would still be Chelsea manager. I heavily doubt though. Jose Mourinho was looking for his next test in management. But even after just three years at Chelsea, he left being Chelsea’s most successful manager. Winning 131 games out of 185, with an winning ratio of 70%. It seemed certain Mourinho’s next venture would be in Italy.

Inter Milan provided Jose Mourinho’s next challenge. Again Mr Mourinho provided the Italian club with instant success. In two years he won a phenomenal two Serie A titles, one Coppa Italia and their first European Cup in 46 years. Some argue that winning Serie A with Inter expected. As Mourinho’s predecessor Roberto Mancini won three Serie A titles in a row. However, Mourinho maintained their dominance in Italy and took Inter’s game to another level. As he mastered their conquering of Europe. Two European cups with two different clubs, he is simply a modern great.

However, even though Jose Mourinho’s success at Inter was nothing short of sensational. It seemed the Portuguese manager was desperate to live Italy. ‘I am very happy at Inter but not in Italian football.’ Again, Jose Mourinho sent the media into frenzy. And he was linked with a full host of Spanish and English clubs. Mourinho highlighted his interest in returning to the Premier League in 2009. ‘I would consider going to Manchester United but United have to consider if they want me to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson. If they do, then of course.’ This demonstrates his ultimate flirtation with other clubs. Mourinho couldn’t have made it more clear that Inter wasn’t he his long term aspiration. As Jose Mourinho was conquering Europe with Inter, he was plotting his next managerial challenge.

It seemed certain the 2010 European Cup final would be the last dance for Jose Mourinho and Inter Milan. Everyone was certain Mourinho would take the reigns at Real Madrid. This is due to the constant press speculation and interest in the job from Mourinho himself. 6 days later, Jose Mourinho was confirmed to be taking over at Real Madrid.

Jose Mourinho’s time at Madrid has been relatively successful. Of course they are 5 points behind Champions Barcelona. But, Madrid have been far more consistent so far this season, in comparison with the last three years.

But it seems Jose Mourinho is already planning his next move. A few days after Mourinho signed for Madrid, there were already rumours surfacing that Mourinho had an escape clause to leave Madrid at the end of each season. Whether that’s true or false is another question. But Mourinho continually keeps commenting on how he would love to ‘one day’ takeover at Manchester United. It does seem Mourinho doesn’t see his long term future in Spain.

Prior to Madrid’s Champions League tie against Lyon, Mourinho commented, ‘I love Chelsea. I was the happiest man [when there]. I was thinking to be there all my life.’ Jose Mourinho simply can’t keep his mouth shut and get on with his daunting task at Real Madrid. Arguably, Madrid is his hardest challenge. As Barcelona are getting stronger every year. However, some believe Jose Mourinho could be doing this to shift the power balance his way at Madrid. Arguably, the Portuguese manager has tried to gain as much power as he can wherever he has managed. Hence why he had difficult relationships with Abramovich and Moratti. Furthermore, it can be quite fairly said that Mourinho’s personality makes him difficult to work with. Some view him as arrogant and egocentric. And maybe that’s why Mourinho moves from club to club? As he is looking for a team, a set of fans and even a nation that loves his presence. Hence why he felt he could stay at Chelsea for ‘all my life.’ But the Madrid hierarchy know too well that his record for instant success speaks for itself. And if he toddles somewhere else its Real Madrid’s loss, not Jose Mourinho’s.

Mourinho is one of the greatest modern day managers, but he is the ultimate journey man. With Mourinho wherever he has been, you never get the sense of a long term ambition of him staying with the club. There always seems to be another challenge Mourinho has set his sights on.

Is Jose Mourinho more interested in personal glory rather than collective glory with one club? It seems quite visible that Mourinho is someone who prides his personal glory over being hugely successful with one or two clubs. Mourinho is highly ambitious and wants to win all the top trophies. And if that means spending a few years in Italy and Spain Mourinho is willing too.

For all the incredible success Jose Mourinho has had, winning 17 trophies in 7 years. And bringing instant success everywhere he has been. Mourinho clearly has journeyman characteristics. The average Mourinho managerial job lasts for around two years, this suggests he is reluctant to have a long term association with a club.

There is one certain value the special one lacks. Loyalty.